In Brief: Le Toussaint Edition

Here is your regular Sunday selection of links to good things in Blogville and Beyond.

• Henry Fogel, one of the ArtsJournal bloggers, calls it quits. Thanks for three years of weekly (or so) thoughts, Henry! [On the Record]


• We may not agree with our favorite Milanese blogger that Hans Werner Henze is the "greatest living composer" (at least not while György Kurtág is still in the running), but it is very good news to hear that Henze is at work on a new opera, Gisela, set to premiere next fall. [Opera Chic]


• A recently founded, exceptionally waggish classical music parody Web site has gotten itself into trouble rather quickly, forced to go on hiatus while the threat of a libel lawsuit is sorted out. Inquiring minds want to know which insult caused the trouble. [The Cereal List]


• We are big fans of the music of Lera Auerbach at Ionarts. So we are sorry indeed to hear of the Russian composer's personal tragedy this week, as reported by Anne Midgette, a fire that gutted her Manhattan apartment. The losses include "all of her manuscripts (including sketches for an opera, Gogol, slated for a premiere in Vienna in 2011), her family's library of rare books from Russia and photographs, and her Steinway concert grand." Insurance will not cover all of the losses, so Auerbach is looking for donors to help her recover. Anyone with deep pockets and a desire to further the future of classical music should contact her. [The Classical Beat]


• With a hat tip to On an Overgrown Path, we direct you to a new and very interesting classical music blog from Athens, Greece. [Music is your only friend]


• Congratulations to Fred Himebaugh on his new opera, They're Made Out of Meat, a setting of Terry Bisson's sci-fi short story. [The Fredösphere]